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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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Game collections vary a lot. A collection of 100 games of mainly card game and roll and writes is a bit different to a collection of bigger games.
Having regularly checked out gamers profiles on BGG the thing I notice is how different everybody's collection is. It’s like a playlist and unique to each player. It will be a function of their income, space, length of time in the hobby and their gaming group.
I have one friend who mainly plays five player. Another friend who mainly plays two player. The other day I was looking at a friend game collection on BGG. We both own the roughly the same number of games but we only had two in common; Modern Art and Skull.:strip_icc()/pic6236221.jpg)
Even these two games we own completely different versions. I own the DiceTree Games edition whereas he has the classic CMON Global Limited with the striking image of the brain. I own black box original edition of Skulls and Roses whereas he has the more modern edition.:strip_icc()/pic3385345.jpg)
I started off building my collection mainly through ebay. I also own lots of ding and dent games. But I also own lots a games that have been imported. I own foreign edition games as well as games that are difficult to get in the U.K. like Stone Garden.:strip_icc()/pic2673631.jpg)
I then, like so many people, fell down the Kickstarter rabbit hole. If you own Kickstarter editions, you will in most cases have paid significantly more than than more cost conscious gamers who waited for retail.
Often early adopters own something unique, like the screen printed elephant in New York Zoo.:strip_icc()/pic6236230.jpg)
Then of course there are deluxe editions, big boxes and revised editions. If you see someone who owns the first edition of Agricola with all the decks and the Agricola: The Goodies Expansion then that’s, in my opinion, significantly different to someone who owns the revised edition. The first is a game lovingly collected. The second is a streamlined cost efficient way of owning a great game.
I always like to have the best version of each game when I buy it. But I am not about sell a game because a deluxe edition comes out. Actually that’s a lie. I backed Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Collector's Edition.
Sometimes the first edition is the best. I must be the only person in the whole world that prefers the first edition of Carpe Diem with the star. But actually I do prefer the third edition art. I dislike the bright art of the second edition of The Castles of Burgundy.:strip_icc()/pic4304063.jpg)
Often you will see multiple editions of the same games in gamers collections. I own Carcassonne: Winter Edition and have ordered Carcassonne: 20th Anniversary Edition./pic2915737.jpg)
Many collections will have the real classics as their backbone. Normally you can obtain Splendor, Catan and Ticket to Ride quite cheaply. Big collections don’t need to cost of fortune. I recently bought Concordia for £28. That’s a lot of game; two maps and great components.:strip_icc()/pic2529616.jpg)
I know it’s weird but I hate it when my friends buy the same games as me. I like not owning the same games as my friends. If lots of my friends buy a game I will ditch it.
I have never been tempted by giant editions of games like Takenoko or Container: 10th Anniversary Jumbo Edition!. I don’t own any big boxes either.:strip_icc()/pic5227549.jpg)
I love getting strange little promos. I love the Istanbul: Caravan Leader Mini Expansion or my raccoon for PARKS./pic6236361.jpg)
The Dyslexic Gamer
A blog about Euro’s with wonderful art and components
Archive for Collecting
19
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Fri Jun 18, 2021 9:05 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I was watching the mega unboxing video on the Dice Tower channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuL2H97GMdo
and it made me feel incredibly sad. It showed the collection of a recently deceased gamer called Phil. He had collected games for over 30 years and had what looked like an extensive collection.
I only watched the video for a few minutes and actually they were not my kind of games he collected. I was stunned as box after box revealed new in shrink games and Kickstarter complete pledges.:strip_icc()/pic4325228.jpg)
I believe the collection was sold to the Dice Tower for a minimum price and will become part of their library to be played at conventions, but it still made me feel uneasy. I particularly didn’t like the promos being thrown into a box. I found the completionist in me saying they need to stay with the game!
There were multiple copies of each game. Usually just two but sometimes more. Why would you buy two copies of a game? I guess as an investment in case the game becomes rare and out of stock. One copy to play and one to sell?
The collection would have cost ten of thousands of dollars to build up. Completed pledges with all the extras don’t come cheap. One a the few games I recognised were two copies of Suburbia: Collector's Edition and the deluxe edition of Brass: Birmingham. Original price for Suburbia $149 each.:strip_icc()/pic5051967.jpg)
I guess Phil could afford it and intended to play the games in his retirement. But it was nevertheless to me, with a small collection by BGG standards, shocking.
It was particularly poignant as I dealt with the Estate of my parents. I asked my brother, who lives aboard to come over for a few days and help my sort out my parent’s stuff. He said just get a big skip and chuck it. It took me a year, spending all my free time selling stuff on ebay, doing boot sales and taking donations to charity shops. My Mum wasn’t an excessive hoarder but nevertheless I had surreal moments like when I donated ten pairs of prescriptions glasses to a project that helps people in Africa get glasses. Why did she have ten pairs? They was literally all over the house.:strip_icc()/pic6222000.jpg)
I also found wonderful surprises like my Dad’s first driving licence from 1952 and a brand new Tissot gold watch with a sapphire in the winder, which fits me perfectly and I love. Also their original copy of Monopoly.:strip_icc()/pic6221563.jpg)
One of my close friends recently lost her husband at 61 and also both her parents in law, all within four months. Shortly after her Mother in Law’s death her property was broken into and extensive damage was done. A lifetimes of cherished possession strewn about the house, damaged and mingled with broken glass and spray paint. So sad.
Rest in peace Phil.
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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Today I had a new mattress delivered which gave me the unique opportunity to survey the bulk of my games collection which is under the bed.
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Twenty one games in view - can you identify them all?
Although I have a small collection by BGG standards I was actually shocked. I am like a alcoholic with games stashed all over the house. I have games in the kitchen, in the lounge and in the study. One hundred in total. I always said I would never go above a hundred and here I am. I need to stop buying games.:strip_icc()/pic6204892.jpg)
I only play games once or twice a week so my collection is more than adequate. Also my board gaming friends own games that I don’t own.
I have a lot of the classics and at least one of each genre I am interested in. With the U.K. expo coming up it’s going to be really tempting to buy another game.
In the past I’ve kept my collection below a hundred by selling games. But I’ve looked through my collection and I can’t identify any more games I want to get rid off. Although as I’ve discussed before Honey Buzz might be for the chop. I just need to play it multiplayer to make sure.:strip_icc()/pic6068841.jpg)
There is no point in getting rid of smaller games and fillers as they barely take up any space.
My shelf of shame isn’t too bad with just four or five games. I have still yet to get Keyper to the table and now I’ve passed on the Kickstarter I won’t be able to play it solo. At game group we are thinking we might have one Sunday a month when we play longer games so hopefully I will finally get it to the table.:strip_icc()/pic6206351.jpg)
I’ve got quite a few Kickstarters delivering so this will push me well over one hundred. I can’t see me immediately getting rid of any. I think Cascadia will be the next to deliver.:strip_icc()/pic5658755.jpg)
If I am going to stop buying games then it makes it kinda pointless watching and reading reviews. Also it makes it more difficult to find content for my blog. A big part of the hobby for me is researching games and learning the rules for new games.
Having said that with board game due to return hopefully I can play new games owned by other people. It will be nice to play with a greater variety of people and explore some new games.
I am letting my Yucata games wind down although I have games that have literally taken months. My longest playing game is a game of At the Gates of Loyang which is finally on its last round. Drafting doesn’t work well on Yucata.
Yesterday we played Underwater Cities for the first time face to face. It lasted nearly four hours for a four player game although that included the teach. With some games that have multiple scorings Yucata is better. I had also forgotten how long it takes to set up some games.:strip_icc()/pic6207523.jpg)
Wed Jun 2, 2021 8:23 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I am doing really badly on my mindful spending challenge indulging in lots of new games. As usual I’ve come up with some pretty good excuses as to why I need the new games.
My game group will really enjoy this
I’ve been playing Underwater Cities on Yucata and it’s a good game. My group really like Terraforming Mars so I know they will enjoy this. Problem is my group is five or six players so as it only plays four player, so I’ve had to convene a special meeting on my day off with just four of us.
I ordered this from France. It’s the first time I’ve bought a game from an European on line retailer since Brexit. Immediately after Brexit they weren’t shipping to the U.K. or the shipping costs charged were massive. The shipping costs were slightly higher than before Brexit but not too bad at €9.50. Also it came within a few days so it nice to see things getting back to normal.:strip_icc()/pic6198795.jpg)
The game game with an interesting looking magazine. I couldn’t read it as it was in French but I wish U.K. retailers would do something similar.:strip_icc()/pic6197933.jpg)
Support a FLGS
Now lockdown is easing I went to Cambridge to see my daughter. Of course I couldn’t help dropping into Heffers and picking up a game. I bought Diamant as my group is six now so I need games that play well at higher player counts. I like this game, it’s really fun. But Heffers also gave me a discount voucher so now I will have to go back to Cambridge to use it!/pic6198794.jpg)
Birthday present
It was my birthday this week so I ended up asking for a game. I’ve already got a bulging shelf of shame but requested another four player game I will struggle to get to the table in the shorter term. Meadow This has a solo option and is highly rated so I am looking forward to this.
I really don’t like the art direction on the box. It looks a mess and whist some of the art on the individual cards looks quite nice overall I don’t really like it. It just doesn’t hang together or create any impact. Makes you realise how great the art on Everdell.:strip_icc()/pic6197709.jpg)
Latest hotness
I kept seeing Honey Buzz mentioned and it looked like an interesting theme. It had nice shiny nectar and cute bee meeples. I’ve played it solo a new times but I am not convinced. I will play this multiplayer before I let it go.:strip_icc()/pic5982441.jpg)
Ding and dent
Caylus 1303 has been on my radar for a while. Recently I’ve been enjoying older games. I think I will really like this and it plays five. This was a bargain in the ding and dent sale.:strip_icc()/pic6046939.jpg)
Classic must have game
Concordia has been on my wish list for the longest time. I’ve lost count the number of times this has been suggested as a game I might like. I’ve played it once two player and I can see why it’s a classic. Looking forward to getting this up the table again and it plays five!
I also acquired La Granja another Yucata discovery. I ordered part way through the second round. It really reminds me of Agricola which is one of my favourite games. I bought this off ebay and paid well over the odds for it, only for a deluxe edition to be announced a couple of days later.:strip_icc()/pic6198700.jpg)
What I think is interesting when you get a few new games together is how different the presentation and components are. Some games have thin boards and cardboard components. Others have plastic inserts and wood and resin components. I like the way the bees were laser cut in Honey Buzz. So intricate.
It’s sometimes hard to work out where the components go in an insert or whether you need to put the punch board under the insert. I looked them up on BGG. I still don’t understand why some inserts are so badly designed. Some boxes have loads of spare space and others are crammed.
I need to get my spending back on track so no more new games for me. I also need to make sure that I get these all played.
Sat May 29, 2021 7:50 am
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I own 92 games and have previously owned 30 so I have a cull rate of about a quarter.
I am ruthless about keeping my collection lean. If I don’t love it then it goes. Even games I quite like I will sell.
A game I just sold Five Tribes which is a game I like but decided to let go. I hadn’t played it in over a year and it’s such a brain burner you can’t play it with newbies or family. With a continued lockdown I can’t see me getting this to the table anytime soon.:strip_icc()/pic5918863.jpg)
I like trying out new games and I am happy to play them a few times and let them go. It’s a bit like renting. I’ve got six Kickstarters coming and I need to make room for them. I targeted Kickstarters with solo options. Looks like the first to be delivered is going to be The Whatnot Cabinet:strip_icc()/pic5411102.jpg)
I always keep half a dozen for sale at any time. I used to sell mainly on ebay but sell on BGG more now. As the commission is less you can price the games more competitively.
I am getting better at picking games I really like. I have actually bought very few games I really dislike. Catan is probably the worse and even that’s not too bad. I always seem to pick the wrong starting hexes when I play this.:strip_icc()/pic5906944.jpg)
There are two categories that I tend to not keep. One is polyomino games. For some sort of reason I keep buying them and the selling them because they are so samey. Bärenpark, Queenz: To Bee or Not to Bee, Copenhagen and Cottage Garden have all been despatched.:strip_icc()/pic4757614.jpg)
The other is abstract strategy type games. Photosynthesis, Sagrada and Tiny Towns have all bitten the dust. I thought all of these were excellent games when I got them but they lacked repayability.:strip_icc()/pic3955859.jpg)
I am often attracted to buy games with cool components like Tokyo Highway. It doesn’t matter how much I tell myself, dexterity is not your bag.:strip_icc()/pic3988197.jpg)
Often I buy games on ebay. You can snap up games for a fraction of their retail price. If you read the description it sometimes says it was too complicated. I think people might buy games because they are in the top 40 and then find them too tricky. I have bought Agricola this way and Le Havre.
I can sort of tell if I am going to keep a game. If I start buying expansions it’s a keeper. But you have to give games a chance. Sometimes you only work out that you really like something after repeated plays. This was true of both Cacao and Viticulture for me.:strip_icc()/pic5919213.jpg)
The one game that I did sell that had expansions was Power Grid Its a great game which I have enjoyed playing. I bought the Power Grid: The Robots to try and play it solo but it didn’t really workout. If I can’t get a game to the table often enough, so it can’t earn a place in my collection.:strip_icc()/pic1421472.jpg)
I think I am going to end up with a smaller collection with games that are just fantastic. Everdell, High Risk and Obsession are definite keepers from last year.:strip_icc()/pic5906356.jpg)
Sat Jan 16, 2021 5:34 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I’ve always been a bit of a collector. I enjoy finding things, scouring through ebay. The trill of the chase. I really enjoy searching through BGG, reading reviews and watching run throughs. I love it when you find a game that promises to be really good. You are buying hope. Hope the game will provide a great gaming experience with your friends and family.
But often those games have just sat on shelves collecting dust. Sure I have enjoying punching out the components, organising it, maybe buying some promos or some bling for it. I’ve read the rules and maybe played a few turns two handed or perhaps played it solo.
I am not a great solo gamer. In fact until lockdown I only usually played a game solo once or twice. There were exceptions. I really used to enjoy The Castles of Burgundy solo. Another great solo game is Agricola (Revised Edition). I really enjoy the solo challenge and trying to see how far I can get. I’ve also really enjoyed Tapestry solo.:strip_icc()/pic5898472.jpg)
When I was attending board game club there were lots of opportunities to get games to the table. The type of games I bought changed quite a bit. I went for newer games with table presence like Wingspan and PARKS.:strip_icc()/pic5898477.jpg)
But actually some of the games that played the best were older games like Viticulture Essential Edition and Modern Art and New York 1901 On the plus side I did buy less promos and expansions.:strip_icc()/pic5898495.jpg)
I will never show the same level of completionism as I did for my first couple of games Carcassonne and Keyflower. Part of the joy of owning these has definitely been collecting the expansions and promos and building inserts for them.:strip_icc()/pic3749626.jpg)
Luckily I also enjoy selling games. I’ve always been a big ebayer. If I don’t enjoy a game I will let it go. I also enjoy photographing games. I let Grand Austria Hotel go. This is despite this being the one of the nicest games to upgrade. I sort of regret this now as I have really being enjoying it on Yucata.
I did feel the need to make sure I owned some of the classic Euro games like Fresco, Cacao and Notre Dame which laid on my shelf of shame for several years. But once I started playing mainly round my house, I didn’t feel any pressure to try the latest hotness. Some of my older games like Vikings and Snowdonia have seen the light of day.:strip_icc()/pic5898532.jpg)
Also I don’t have to worry about drinks being split in a crowded pub so more expensive games like Obsession and Low Lands.:strip_icc()/pic5898535.jpg)
I have several jewels in my collection I talked about in this blog post Jewel of my collection including the collector’s edition of Everdell and Snowdonia: Deluxe Master Set.
I have been lucky that I gave managed to get hold of a lot of my grail games like The Palaces of Carrara, Fjords and Ginkgopolis and Walnut Grove. However I have learned not to spend lots of money on grail games because they inevitably come back into print.:strip_icc()/pic5898555.jpg)
Of course one of the major drivers of my collection is Kickstarter. I’ve got some many projects in the pipeline. So despite my best efforts my collection seems to grow. It’s just sad I have nowhere to display them. I am however, determined to rein in my expenditure this year. I just might back one or two more expensive projects like the collector edition of Castles of Mad King Ludwig.
Wed Jan 6, 2021 11:41 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I have made a few mistakes since I got into board gaming. Here is my list so you don’t make the same mistakes.If it sounds too good to be true is probably is. I had been looking for Terraforming Mars at a reasonable price. The game doesn’t have great components, so I didn’t want to spend a fortune on it. Then I saw it on ebay. It was a U.K. based ebayer, or so I thought and they had thirty or so positive feedbacks and it was only £30. A bargain. The only thing slightly untoward was that it was a stock photo.
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I was suspicious as soon as it arrived. Badly packed in just a plastic bag. The components and die cutting were poor and it was missing its instructions. Anyway to cut a long story short I did eventually get my money back.
Lesson learned. A genuine ebayer will take their own photos. I always check them very carefully to make sure all the components are present. I’ve bought lots of games off ebay and to date have had very few issues.
I repeated the mistake with Deep Sea Adventure a couple of years later. This fake is so good it’s almost impossible to tell it apart from the real edition.
I think it’s really important that we try and avoid buying fakes at all possible. Game designers deserve to be well paid for what they do. So now I am much more careful. Luckily counterfeit games still seem to be fairly rare.:strip_icc()/pic5830415.jpg)
I had wanted Crows for ages but it’s not a game you see very often. Then a copy came up on ebay so I bought it. But when it turned up it wasn’t what I expected. Indeed the gameplay had changed fairly dramatically and the artwork too. Turned out Crows had been reimplemented and I had bought Tyler Sigman's Crows. The art much darker. Now I am very careful about checking editions./pic3185239.png)
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Also check the language, especially on Amazon. I have fallen fowl of this twice now. The first was Cottage Garden. I bought am Italian edition. Not that it was that bad as at least the game is language independent. I just downloaded the rules from BGG.:strip_icc()/pic5820195.jpg)
But then I bought an Italian edition of Tokaido: Crossroads which has cards with text so I had to paste them up which is less than ideal.
I also bought the Tokaido Collectors pack not realising the minis don’t really fit unless you have the bigger board. It always pays to really do your research if there are multiple editions or versions.
I haven’t done it but I do know people who have bought expansions for Carcassonne in the wrong art.
I have also been caught out by custom charges. I bought three or four promos from the board Game geek store only to be hit by custom charges. As well as the actual duty, there is an “administrator charge” that they add on even if the duty is just a £1 or £2.
I love promos and have in my excitement of bought promos on ebay to find they are incompatible with my game. I once bought theonly to find it’s for Sushi Go! whereas I had Sushi Go Party!
Another mistake I made was getting the Viticulture expansion Viticulture: Arboriculture Expansion as I really liked the theme of this. It has tomarto sauce and cheese! Only problem is that you need Viticulture: Tuscany Essential Edition to play it which I don’t own.:strip_icc()/pic5830352.jpg)
With new games it almost always pays to wait. Wait and see what reviewers think of it. Wait and see if you can find it at a good price. With preorders you can wait months to get a game. This happened with The One Hundred Torii and now is happening now New York Zoo. I think I am going to forget about preorders in the future and just wait until I see the game for sale when the new hotness has worn off.:strip_icc()/pic5817635.jpg)
If your one of the first to jump in you often pay more. Buying direct from the retailer, you will often paying a higher price than waiting for it to come to retail. I’ve done this with Tapestry and the Wingspan expansions. Each time I regret it and say I will wait and then promptly pre-order the next thing. I do like being one of the first to get a new game./pic5825862.jpg)
I have been really impressed by Wingspan: Oceania Expansion The new player mats and resource nectar really change the game up a bit. More so than the Wingspan: European Expansion. I like the yellow end of game cards they are really powerful. The only problem is the new nectar tokens don’t match up with my other upgraded food tokens.
Wed Dec 9, 2020 6:05 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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When I first got into gaming I bought some games that I paid way to much for. I hadn’t heard of Vasel’s law and I didn’t know that out of print games are often reprinted.
I had a sense that coming late to the hobby, I had missed out on some terrific games and that if I wanted to acquire them I had better do so quickly because otherwise they would increase in price further.
Carcassonne was my gateway game and one expansion stood out for me and that was Carcassonne: Die Katharer. This is a very thematic expansion that enables you to besiege cities. The art is also great and very detailed.:strip_icc()/pic84394.jpg)
Needless to say I had to own it and after unsuccessfully bidding on it on ebay several times I bought it. It set me back £40. That’s £10 a tile. Let’s not mention the special Essen tiles.
I bought the Keyper edition with the custom printed Keyples through the Geek Market. Paid £90 for it which was quite expensive but again the character edition is rare. Still £90 for a second hand game. Also bought an insert for it so that was another £20. Enough for three games! It’s not even in the top thousand games. But I love the Key series. What can I say?:strip_icc()/pic3796895.jpg)
I paid £20 for Agricola: Glonnacker. To be fair it did come as part of a bigger promo for Caverna. However, I mainly wanted it for this tile. I then subsequently sold my base copy of Agricola anyway as I have Caverna and now play Agricola mainly on line. I still have the tile and I do toy with the idea of getting another copy of Agricola./pic2657931.jpg)
I bought Limes through the Geek Market. It was £40 but it did include a couple of expansions. This would have been a cheap game when it was first published but out of print for a while when I bought it. It’s a great solo or two player game. You can now pick this up for about £13. A absolute bargain.:strip_icc()/pic3431292.jpg)
Several other out of print games followed including Glen More, The Palaces of Carrara, Fjords, Rococo and Ginkgopolis. Most of which have been or are going to be reprinted. What’s even more annoying is that when games are reprinted they tend to be better than the old ones, upgraded with Beth Sobel art and extra expansions. Grrrr! I refuse point blank to buy the reprinted editions as a point of honour. I paid over the odds, I will bloody well enjoy it come what may.:strip_icc()/pic5817248.jpg)
I love Stone Garden and just had to own it. It comes with stone minis. I bought it on eBay and it was shipped from Japan. It Cost £90 plus about £10 in import tax. I was really worried that it wouldn’t arrive but it did and I am really happy to own it./pic5817206.jpg)
This is a more recent purchase Everdell: Collector's Edition. I just had to have the collectors edition for the rats and the extra cards. It cost £98 for the collectors edition compared to £41 for the standard edition. Mad! There is no way it’s worth the extra. But it seemed like a good idea at the time.:strip_icc()/pic5817209.jpg)
I am also a bit of a sucker for bling. Viticulture Essential Edition custom meeples $60 and my first Kickstarter. That included the Tuscany ones as well and I don’t even own Tuscany.:strip_icc()/pic5817215.jpg)
My love for Meeplesource knows no bounds so the Wingspan European bird meeples and expanded player board followed./pic5817217.jpg)
Then there was the DiceTree Games version of Modern Art
imported from Korea and as well of the cost of the game I had to pay £25 of import duties as well. But I love this and especially the coins with Reiner Knizia head on the $100 coin. It’s like paying homage to the great man himself./pic5817223.jpg)
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Having said all that I have stuck to my pledge never to pay more than £100 for a game.
Fri Nov 27, 2020 9:29 pm
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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I have been doing the mindful spending challenge this year. I set some goals which were:
Buy no more than ten games (I can buy an extra game for each game I sell)
increase my h-Index from 7 to 12
Reduce my self of shame from by nine games
Back no more than five Kickstarters
Needless to say I created some wriggle room for myself by not including small card games and fillers, promos or expansions but then the challenge for me was more around space than expense.
So how have I done? Twenty games bought and nine sold so net gain of eleven. H-Index is 10 Shelf of shame reduced by four games Six Kickstarter backed (one sold)
I bought three expansions and three small card games and backed three expansions on Kickstarter.
Unfortunately my ability to play games off my shelf of shame was limited due to Covid. But the highlight of those played was definitely Notre Dame.:strip_icc()/pic2407823.jpg)
In terms of games bought highlights include Little Town, Draftosaurus and Everdell. All of these are top twenty games for me. I enjoyed Everdell so much I invested in the collector’s edition.:strip_icc()/pic5795233.jpg)
Kickstarters backed include The Whatnot Cabinet, Cascadia and Canopy.:strip_icc()/pic5451937.jpg)
Expansions were Tapestry: Plans and Ploys, Obsession: Upstairs, Downstairs and PARKS: Nightfall Expansion. Obsession was definitely the best, but with more time spent solo gaming I think the other two will see some more play.
Small card games were Ecosystem and Abandon All Artichokes. I have particularly enjoyed the later.
Games I considered backing on Kickstarter but didn’t were Canvas, Flourish, Where am I ? Alice in a Mad Tea party and Amsterdam. This was due mainly the cost considerations. It remains to be seen if any of these come to retail.:strip_icc()/pic4989346.jpg)
Games I nearly bought but didn’t included Coffee Roaster, A Feast for Odin and Paris. I may very well pick one or two of these up in the fullness of time.:strip_icc()/pic5168230.jpg)
I also had to resist Dreaming Spires. The theme attracted me to this one. Alma Mater is another game I’ve been looking at.:strip_icc()/pic5690541.jpg)
I was also tempted by Cartographers I am not sure how a flip and write will go down with my group. But I am tempted as it has a solo option and comes in a nice small box. In fact I think I could argue this is a small card game.
I’ve used various means to try and reduce my acquisitions including trying to adopt a one in one out system.
I am more careful now making sure game meet my criteria and
thinking about who I will play the game with. I also don’t push to buy button right away but wait a few days. This works well with Kickstarters.
I also make a rule to try and not buy games my friends have although I as tempted to pick up Res Arcana as I was so impressed by this. If it had a solo option I would. Same with Quadropolis.:strip_icc()/pic5233475.jpg)
I think by being more selective I’ve definitely increased my success rate and bought less games that I will end up selling. I do worry that I am missing out on great games but with thousands being produced each year it would be impossible to pin point all the good ones. I know I need to learn to wait and see if games stand the test of time before buying them.
Obviously covid has had a massive impact on my gaming. I gone from playing six or seven games a week to just playing one or two so the opportunities to utilise by collection is falling. I can’t see board game club recommencing until the Summer at the earliest. So solo has a far bigger impact on my decision making.
This blog hasn’t helped my acquisition rates with all the wonderful suggestions. Sometimes I wish I was still in the infancy of my boardgaming where I would just buy any game that I found exciting. While being mindful is important I don’t want to lose that joy of discovery.:strip_icc()/pic5796045.jpg)
Wed Nov 18, 2020 5:54 am
- [+] Dice rolls
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Caroline BlackUnited Kingdom
Braintree
Essex
Tigger playing Agricola. He lost!
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Despite having written this blog for over three months there are still games in my collection I haven’t really mentioned.
I am a great tile laying fan, so I’ve got lots of weird and wonderful tile laying games.
Versailles is a beautiful looking game in which the whole board is a time track. You can only go in one direction although it is possible to take a shortcut through the construction yard. Players start with five or six meeples so you can get multiple resources if you have more than one meeple on an action spot. You collect resources to build tiles which form the palace of Versailles.
You can also get additional workers. The idea is to get the most victory points from tiles and decorations. I think they were a bit ambitious as to the complexity of the palaces tiles so if you are not careful you can’t actually continue to build the palace. The game ends when the palace is built, the tile stack has less than eight tiles or the King gets to the end of his track. So there is scope for manipulating the end of the game by completing rounds and moving the King along. The king is very uninspiring; just a little purple pawn.:strip_icc()/pic2327067.jpg)
Citrus is another tile laying area control game. It has an interesting twist on selecting the tiles. The have to buy complete row or columns. You regularly have to pull your workers off and score some tiles to get money to buy new tiles. So it has that sort of push me pull me mechanism. Always plays well this game but it’s one of those games that sort of faded into obscurity.:strip_icc()/pic1826859.jpg)
Lotus Another area control game, this time battling for flowers. This game is super simple and has real table presence. No idea why this doesn’t get more love. I like the little bugs that come with it that help you gain control.:strip_icc()/pic4084714.jpg)
Queendomino is a more complex version of Kingdomino. It loses some of the purity of its predecessor but is still a great game with the added twist of buildings, Knights and castles. We like playing this combined with Kingdomino to build a 7 by 7 grid or playing 6 player. This plays surprising well at high player counts.:strip_icc()/pic4004386.jpg)
Another under appreciated gem is Santa Maria. This has a lot going on. Tile laying, dice activation, shipping but even so it all hangs together brilliantly. There is a great sense escalation and satisfaction running your little chains of buildings. But you gave be careful how you run them to avoid leaving your dice blocking other chains. So clever! I always like to nominate this game for worse art/box cover/awful typography threads.:strip_icc()/pic5005158.jpg)
Vikings is an older game with a resource wheel. Again tile laying, this is an unusual game with some interesting decisions. Shall I take the tile and viking pair I want but pay a lot for it or conserve my money and try and get the more powerful tiles later. If you choose the most expensive tile/meeple pair you also get a bonus.:strip_icc()/pic1641931.jpg)
Finally Peloponnes. I think this game doesn’t get a lot of love because the art is so bland. It’s a sort of empire building game where you are managing your population and making sure you can feed them. The heart of the game is an auction to buy tiles to expand your empire. But every round potential disasters like earthquakes, plagues and famines become more likely and can ruin your empire in a second if you don’t plan carefully. Brutal.:strip_icc()/pic1814473.png)
Mon Oct 19, 2020 9:48 pm
- [+] Dice rolls
